SEEK, KNOCK, ASK
Thus saith the LORD GOD,
I will yet for this be enquired of.
Ye have not, because ye ask not
Ask and it shall be given unto you; seek and ye shall find;
knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for everyone that
asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him
that knocketh it shall be opened.
This is the confidence we have in HIM, that, if we ask any
thing according to HIS will, HE heareth us: and if we know
that HE hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have
the petitions that we desired of HIM.
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of GOD, that giveth
to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be
given unto him.
Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.
Men ought always to pray, and not to faint.
The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and HIS
ears are open unto their cry The LORD heareth, and delivereth
them out of all their troubles.
Ye shall ask in MY name; and I say not unto you, that I will
pray to the FATHER for you: for the FATHER HIMSELF loveth
you, because ye have loved ME. Ask and ye shall receive, that
your JOY may be full.
AMEN and AMEN
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May 25th - St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi, Mystic
Mystical ecstasy is the elevation of the spirit to God in such a way that
the person is aware of this union with God and both internal and external
senses are detached from the sensible world. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi was so
generously given this special gift of God that she is called the "ecstatic
saint." She was born into a noble family in Florence in 1566. The normal
course would have been for Catherine de Pazzi to have married wealth and
enjoyed comfort, but she chose to follow her own path. At nine she learned
to meditate from the family confessor. She made her first Communion at the
then-early age of 10 and made a vow of virginity one month later. When 16,
she entered the Carmelite convent in Florence because she could receive
Communion daily there.
Catherine had taken the name Mary Magdalene and had been a novice for a year
when she became critically ill. Death seemed near so her superiors let her
make her profession of vows from a cot in the chapel in a private ceremony.
Immediately after, she fell into an ecstasy that lasted about two hours.
This was repeated after Communion on the following 40 mornings. These
ecstasies were rich experiences of union with God and contained marvelous
insights into divine truths.
As a safeguard against deception and to preserve the revelations, her
confessor asked Mary Magdalene to dictate her experiences to sister
secretaries. Over the next six years, five large volumes were filled. The
first three books record ecstasies from May of 1584 through Pentecost week
the following year. This week was a preparation for a severe five-year
trial. The fourth book records that trial and the fifth is a collection of
letters concerning reform and renewal. Another book, "Admonitions", is a
collection of her sayings arising from her experiences in the formation of
women religious.
The extraordinary was ordinary for this saint. She read the thoughts of
others and predicted future events. During her lifetime, she appeared to
several persons in distant places and cured a number of sick people.
It would be easy to dwell on the ecstasies and pretend that Mary Magdalene
only had spiritual highs. This is far from true. It seems that God permitted
her this special closeness to prepare her for the five years of desolation
that followed when she experienced spiritual dryness. She was plunged into a
state of darkness in which she saw nothing but what was horrible in herself
and all around her. She had violent temptations and endured great physical
suffering. She died in 1607 at 41, and was canonized in 1669.
Comment:
Intimate union, God's gift to mystics, is a reminder to all of us of the
eternal happiness of union he wishes to give us. The cause of mystical
ecstasy in this life is the Holy Spirit, working through spiritual gifts.
The ecstasy occurs because of the weakness of the body and its powers to
withstand the divine illumination, but as the body is purified and
strengthened, ecstasy no longer occurs. On various aspects of ecstasy, see
Teresa of Avila, "Interior Castle", and John of the Cross, "Dark Night of
the Soul".
Quote:
There are many people today who see no purpose in suffering. Mary Magdalene
de Pazzi discovered saving grace in suffering. When she entered religious
life she was filled with a desire to suffer for Christ during the rest of
her life. The more she suffered, the greater grew her desire for it. Her
dying words to her fellow sisters were: "The last thing I ask of you-and I
ask it in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ-is that you love him alone, that
you trust implicitly in him and that you encourage one another continually
to suffer for the love of him."
Saint Quote:
"Resist your impatience faithfully, practicing, not only with reason, but
even against reason, holy courtesy and sweetness to all, but especially to
those who weary you the most"
-St. Francis de Sales
(Taken from the book "A Year with the Saints". May - Meekness)
Bible Quote
19 And the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into
heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God. 20 But they going forth
preached every where: the Lord working withal, and confirming the word with
signs that followed. (Mark 16:19-20)
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HYMN OF THE EVENING
O joyful Light! Light and Holy Glory of the Father immortal, the heavenly,
holy, the Blessed One; O Jesus Christ. Now that we have reached the setting
of the sun, and see the evening light, we sing to God, Father + Son, and
Holy Spirit. It is fitting at all times to raise a song of praise in
measured melody to You, O Son of God, the giver of life. Behold the universe
sings your glory.
**Don't forget to pray the Stations of the Cross on Fridays
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